


Belated Thrantonovember, turned Thrantodecember

by Yaani



Category: Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: Thrawn Series - Timothy Zahn (2017)
Genre: Angst, Bullying, Dad Eli Vanto, Domestic Fluff, Established Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo/Eli Vanto, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fraternization doesn't exist AU, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mom Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Sexism, Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo Needs a Hug, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:20:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27796024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yaani/pseuds/Yaani
Relationships: Eli Vanto & Original Female Character(s), Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo & Original Female Character(s), Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo/Eli Vanto
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27





	1. Soft

“What about this one then?” Thrawn asked, looking at Eli from above and bending his head to the side in curiosity. 

“What? No, that’s uncomfortable! Take it out!”

“You think? What if we readjust it like that then? Isn’t this better?”

“Ouch! Ah-aahhh!”

“Okay, I get it, I get it. I’ll remove it and try again.” Thrawn mumbled, moving a bit to the side. “What about now?”

“It’s hard…” Eli pouted. 

It had all started two weeks ago when Eli had begun experiencing neck pain. "It's all from those rocks you people use for pillows!", he had told Thrawn one morning, after an entire night spent waking the man up by turning and tossing around. Thrawn had tried to protest it first, of course. "Those are not rocks, they are simply made from wool and salt, and are actually very good for your-" Eli's death glare had cut him off mid sentence. Needless to say, the Chiss hadn't tried to bring this argument up again. 

It took five days without sleep for Thrawn to oh-so-swiftly realise exactly why married human men seem to always insist on having a good and comfortable couch at home.

Seven days for him to begin agreeing with Eli that the company they bought their furniture probably shouldn't have used the same material they used for the pillows on said couch. 

Ten days for him to decide that enough is enough and take Eli pillow shopping with him. 

They had been going at it for four days now. This was the last shop on the entirety of Csalpar that Eli had not as of yet had the chance to quietly curse out under his breath for its "no softness whatsoever" and "when I married you, I had thought of different reasons that would keep me up at night" (Thrawn had sensibly bit his tongue on that one)

("It's the same everywhere. I don't understand. Why the kriff is it the same everywhere?!"

"I don't know, Eli. You're the one whose father is a businessman, you tell me")

"Can I offer you anything?" Mai'ko, the shop's assistant offered. Thrawn didn't actually know if her name was Mai'ko or not, but after visiting all in all fifty-four shops for pillows in less than as many hours, they all seemed like Mai'kos to him. 

"We are looking for a pillow that's, eh..." The man's cheeks flushed. God, he was sounding like a lunatic now. "That's not woolen"

"You've found the perfect place for it then! Here, at Mai'ko's pillow shop we have all sorts of pillows!" He fucking knew it. "From stone ones to ones filled with ice that never melts!" 

Five hours later, Eli and Thrawn collapsed on their marital bed, with a throbbing headache and no new pillow. Thrawn softly pulled his lover to his side, stroking his hair tenderly to help the pain go away. 

"Thrawn?"

"Yes, my heart?"

"You were right. The pillows we have are not made from stone after all..."

The man chuckled softly. "But that doesn't mean you psychos don't have those either way!"

"Relax, Eli. We'll find one that suits you, even if we have to go to the Republic to buy it."

They both fell into comfortable silence. The Chiss had moved on to run soothing circles on the man's back, like he sometimes did to their daughter after a nightmare. He felt Eli's weight grow a tad bit heavier on his chest as he was slowly lulled to sleep.

"Thrawn?"

"Yes, Eli?" He asked with a smile. 

"Have I ever told you how soft you are..."


	2. Pets (Don't let them bite!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What is a pet?"  
> Trigger warning: Mentions of physical harassment

If there is one thing Eli Vanto regretted, it was teaching Mitth'raw'nuruodo the word pet. 

"Do they count as pets too?"

"Hmphhh..." The man blinked a few times, trying and failing to brush the sleep from his eyes. Silence had once more spread around the room, with no fiery red lights to indicate his roommate was awake. Just as Eli was about to commit himself to following the Chiss's example in yet another regard, Thrawn helpfully repeated the question louder.

"Who...what..."

"Orbar. His friends." Eli raised an eyebrow. The Chiss quieted down for a second, seeiming to for the first time in his life actually consider what he is about to say. "If they count as pets, do you adress them as a "what" or a "who"?"

Or not. 

"Rawn...What time is it even..." 

"0300. Are you evading my question?"

"What question?" 

The man actually had the audacity to *sigh* at that. Eli sat up in his bed and cast him a glare. A glare, which softened the moment he saw the sleeping bags under his partner's eyes. His red marks, which always seemed to eminate their own now sunk in darness. "Treacherous signs of weakness", Thrawn's voice echoed in his brain as he recalled their conversation that first night, cuddled together on his bunk, after Orbar had first attacked them.

Thrawn had not been the same since.

"Why...why would you ask that, darling?"

Eli knew the answer before it had even escaped his mate's mouth. Or rather, he knew the correct answer, regardless of whatever it is that did come through the still bruised blue lips. 

Nightmares.

Thrawn would sooner grow back his hair and willingly cut it off than admit the attack had startled him just as much as it had Eli, if not more. That had been his first true awakening to the type of world (or galaxy, really) he would be forced to spend the remainder of his days in. A preview, if you will. With the tiny detail that no matter how much he tried, he could never cancel the "subscription", and instead would be forced to pay for the rest of his life for the crimes he had committed back in the Ascendancy. (Eli refused to believe a preemptive strike had been the only reason species so loyal as the Chiss to reject a man so resourceful and ingenious as Thrawn.)

Of course, he still offered him his support. Had Thrawn promise him he would wake him up the next time he had nightmares, a panic attack. Tell him whenever he the bad thoughts arose so that he could shut them up. If more for his own mind's ease than Thrawn's. And once again of course, the man hadn't reached back. Until now.

"You said it's slang for a favored student, didn't you? I fail to see why they called me a pet, if he had enough privileges not to be excludd after everything."

Officially, Thrawn had been the ones to propose Greenlark go even easier on them. Eli could only guess that his sleep hadn't been the only victim of the attack. Some of his political naivety had gone too. In the heat of the moment he had known that had he chosen to appear before the court then, only one month into his stay, the simple attack he had faced would suddenly look like a pleasant back rub to him. No matter if he won the case or not. 

Another glance at Thrawn's crestfallen face confirmed it. This time, the man returned it, broken resigned red eyes locking with candid browns.

The gaze intensified, moving down to Eli's lips expectantly, before going back to his eyes.

"No, Thrawn. They are not pets." Eli said curtly, causing Thrawn to look down. "They are animals."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so that was for today, folks  
> I'll admit, I had something entirely different planned (well two other ideas, one of them going to an animal shelter to volunteer during a shore leave; the other of Thrawn and their daughter bringing home a snake as a pet and causing Eli to get his first white hairs) but then I started typing the words in and this came out...somehow  
> Anyway, to everyone on Balkans (or anywhere it snowed for the first time, really) - честит първи сняг/ Happy first snow!  
> If I don't upload in a few hours, feel free to believe I froze to death on the way home from the grocery store  
> Here I think I'll put a stop to my chaotic rambling  
> *places a stolen stop sign and waves bye*  
> *squints eyes from the sounds of the car crashes going on behind me, because some idiot from the construction company forgot to put a stop sign*


	3. Cold/Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Discussions are made.  
> Combination of the prompts for day three and four - Cold and Home (no idea if we are actually allowed to do that, but oh well, might as well bend this rule too while I'm at it)  
> Also, for clarification, Chiss are hermaphrodites in this AU

Cold & Home

"Do you want a house of your own, Mitth'eli'vanto?" Thrawn asked softly, after placing a kiss to each one of Eli’s fingers. In truth, they were not married yet, but he knew Eli always lit up whenever he called him by his future name.

"Oh, yes...hmm, though with a slight correction here. In two months’ time it would be of "our" own."

"Indeed." 

The human sighed content and let himself lie down next to his future spouse, snuggled beneath him and the ysalamiri plushy Thrawn had gotten him last Valentine's day. He felt waves of warm air hit the back of his neck as Thrawn breathed in and out in slow succession. The rhythmical sound of his heartbeat almost reminding him of something else. The sound of soft footsteps against the ground that did not seem quite so far away in their future now as Eli had once feared it would. Not now though. Now was not the time.

"It wouldn't be big by any means...maybe a bit larger than the one I grew up in, nothing close to what you were once used to, of course" Eli stopped himself to chuckle softly, the memory of Thrawn's dumbfounded expression when he'd learnt the largest human palace has "only" three hundred rooms arising. The man could only roll his eyes in reply. "But still," he continued, "it will be ours. And hopefully, eventually, not just ours." Eli hinted.

Thrawn froze in his place for a second. They had never discussed this topic before. A stern, calculating expression crossed his face, causing his husband to almost regret not bringing it up sooner. 

"How many children would you like me to birth you, Theliva?" He asked, the previous expression disappearing just as soon as it had arrived, masked under a small smile at the corner of his lips. Eli quickly sat on the bed, hands raised defensively up in the air. 

"I didn't mean it this way! Only if you want to!" His posture broke a little when Thrawn's tender look did not fade away. "Do...do you want to? Wait, you really want to?!" The man did not acknowledge his excitement, and kept pushing further.

"This does not really answer my question though, does it?"

A red colour appeared on Eli's cheeks, matching the one of the robes they would wear on their wedding day, to honour Thrawn's heritage. "Well, I grew up an only child and it just gets lonely, y'know. It did not really help when all my classmates and cousins had as many siblings as they did and stuff...What I'm trying to say is, I've always wanted a big family. Four, maybe five kids." He looked up at Thrawn to check his look had not altered. It hadn't. Good. "At least."

A long silence broke between them, providing the Ensign with the needed time to realize he hadn’t messed up then, when he’d mentioned children. Now though... Thrawn moved to get up from the bed, Eli jumping up to chase after him, yet he finds no reason to. The man crouched back down and wrapped his arms around him, along with a blanket he had taken. Their warmest one. 

“I noticed your hands were cold earlier.” He explained. “Even now you’re shivering. You know, because I don’t get cold as much as you, it means you should tell me when you do get cold, not try to keep up with me.”

Thrawn playfully trailed one of his hands up to his lover’s wide open mouth, before closing it and locking it in a kiss. Disappointingly, the lower jaw dropped once again as he moved back his hand to warm that of Eli’s. “Then it’s four or five kids I will give you. At least.”

For a while, there was no change of expression in Eli’s pose. He simply stood, eying the other man like a rare piece of art. 

“Mitth’eli’vanto, I feel the need to remind you that flies are not part of tonight’s dinner plan.” Was what Thrawn would have probably said, had a brown lightning not knocked them both on the bed, Eli’s hands in a death grip around him. In his mind, Thrawn still likes to believe he felt Eli’s moistened cheeks against his, all those many years ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah, yes, nothing like discussing major life goals and deal breakers two months before the wedding...


	4. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> To start anew, Eli needs to cut all ties.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: Abuse, sexism, mentions of homophobia and racism

Eli Vanto stood anxiously in front of the hologram. His nostrils flared with every deep breath he took to calm his nerves. A strong blue arm wrapped itself around him, followed by its owner's lips as they traced carefully down the side of his face. 

"You don't have to do this for me." Thrawn's deep, smooth voice rang in his ear, as a second hand sneaked its way to join the first in a tight embrace. "Only if you want to and only for you, Eli."

"I know," he sighed, resting his head on the welcoming warm shoulder. Thrawn soothingly nibbed on his ear.

Eli's index finger remained on the hologram's switch button, not pushed it any further, yet not pulling away either, to allow the reality to set in, as his mind wavered back to the start.

\---

It had all begun one day several years ago, when Eli was but a boy of twelve, wrapped in his own twelve year old boy problems and fascinations, all of which a worthy enough challenge to the life experience of the twelve-year-old mind to ensure full preoccupation of its time. It is, because of this state he'd found himself in, that Eli could always before turn a blind eye to the tiny remarks and small occasions of favoritism, brushing them under the rug as "normal" - his mother's deranged glee as she told Eli of the grandsons he was going to give her when he grew, his uncle going out for a beer after every girl his wife gave birth to, compared to the parties he threw at the arrival of each of his four sons, the way his older female cousins shook their head and looked slightly to the side as their brothers went on their usual rampage.

Bitter cries are what had startled Eli awake that day. Before he knew it, he had run down the corridors, whizzed through the kitchen and found himself in the living room. It was there he stumbled upon a sight that would haunt him for the rest of his days - his oldest cousin with her swollen, crying face, the saliva flowing between her lips as she hiccuped. Her once long, brown curls now decorated the floor below, as a Lysatran wedding rituual old as time required them to be. Five red fingerprints were sprawled across her cheek. His mother and aunt hovered above her.

Soon enough, the girl noticed him in return, and let out a surprised gasp. His aunt turned around with lighting speed. Five more red spots appeared on her other cheek not long after.

"Stupid girl! Don't you have any shame appearing like this in front of *him*?!"

Eli ran.

Years later, he would come around to bless this even as the first to snap him out of the lies his society had been feeding him. But until then, he allowed himself to swallow gulp after gulp of his mother's sweet voiced explanations, and the teachings he gathered from the "man-to-man" talks his father sat him through.

"Women are always like this on their wedding day, darling," Mrs. Vanto told him softly. "They're scared and lost the first night. They need someone to guide them through life. That's where their husbands come in. It's why we're proud to have a soon too. He will lead."

"What if I have a daughter?" Eli had asked innocently. His mother shot him a scornful glare.

"Why would you want that, sugar?" She asked, once again not letting her voice betray her true emotions. The wrinkles around her eyes began to soften. "You saw what your poor ant had to go through with hers. And to think the woman gave birth to seven of them, poor thing!", she added, not letting him answer.

Eli understood not long after that to survive, he had to hide. Not just to hide however, but to completely integrate himself into the society he had been born in. He excelled in all of his classes. He made sure to sing Republican, and later Imperial songs the loudest, and mourn the passing of the elderly generals the longest. He hid amongst his peers on the anti-gay protests, yet when alone always stuck his face in the books, searching for more. He knew there *had* to be more. Hours and hours he donated to his community, running after the religious leaders to ask question after question. When the Empire came, he was the first to enlist. Always yell with the crowd, that’s what he’d remind himself at night. It’s the only way to keep safe.

And then he met Thrawn. Brilliant, graceful Thrawn, who from the moment he joined their society, had been excluded. Thrawn, who represented everything society - and Eli- had spewn hateful comments against time after time, yet still replied to it with none of his own. When Thrawn’s hair had been cut and the man had struggled to explain its cultural significance, using the few words in Basic he knew, he hadn’t seen it as a sign of weakness or indecency. He’d instead stayed the entire night and told him stories of his own culture. When he first saw Thrawn cry, he used his fingers to wipe away his tears, and to stroke his cheek until he calmed. The man made his fair deal of mistakes (or errors, as he called them) too. He’d find himself lost in all that new information, and all those new people, and sounds, and smells. Yet throughout it all Eli knew he needn’t guide Thrawn out of it. He merely took his hand, and enjoyed the breeze of the air as they passed through all obstacles together. He allowed himself to be immersed in the man’s beliefs and philosophy, letting them flow over him like water, smoothening the sharpest points of his ingrained prejudices until even the last reminiscence of the weak, self-conscious being his parents had built had vanished.

His family, of course, disapproved. For once, Eli found himself not caring. They cried, screamed, threatened to disown him, leave him with nothing and no one, and then screamed some more. All that accomplished however, was create more breeze, as the couple walked past, the Chiss’s hand locking itself in his. 

And so it was that this disdain of theirs, too, passed. Soon his family were calling, begging to talk, trying to justify their actions, never apologizing. None of that held any power to the young man now, as he and Thrawn slowly began building their own family. 

Eli gazed at the swell of his beloved’s belly, where their daughter resided. He would never let his parents know of her. He had promised to his spouse the day they’d seen the two lines on the pregnancy test, the first of many to come, and had let him cry on his shoulder, that he would do absolutely everything necessary to keep her safe. Anna Mitth-Vanto would not know abuse in her life. Not if her parents had a say. 

The calming melody of the hologram sounded across the room, as they waited for the Vantos to pick up. Eli almost cherished it.

“You are the one who is going to live with this choice, my heartbeat,” Thrawn reminded one last time, before exiting the room himself to give his partner some space and privacy.

“Live with it, or don’t have a life without it.”, Eli said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, the whump will start soon...he...hehe....hehehehe.....he.....
> 
> MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!


	5. Command

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dark force takes comand of Thrawn and Eli's lives

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A continuation of the pregnancy arc.  
> I don't belive I noted this in the previous chapter but both Thrawn and Eli are 20.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Eli gripped Thrawn’s sweaty hand tightly as they ran through the forest. The lights were on behind them, protruding between the trees, exaggerating their shadows further into the stormy night. The man forced himself to pay no mind to them, as he whizzed through the chilly air, leaving only trails of vapor from his paced breaths. Even that was more than enough for the deranged cries of their pursuers. Both men hoped it was merely men that were after them. 

“Faster, Thrawn, faster!” Eli yelled, not daring to even take a quick glance at the former’s face. Don’t look behind. It’ll cause you to slow down and then… The Chiss’s gasps quickly broke his thoughts apart. Eli sped up. 

As a child, he’d ran through this forest many times, playing hide and seek with his cousins. Never before in winter. Never as a deserter. 

The Emperor had learnt of their child, and sent mercenaries after them one night of their shared shore leave on Eli’s home planet. This had been forty nine hours ago. They’d been on the run since then.

The ramble of the three engines sent flying above them sent shivers down his spine. More lights cut through the darkness. He could feel Thrawn’s worried look piercing his back as he abruptly switched directions, away from all the known tracks he had taken and helped pave in his youth. The long dry grass easily cut through his pants. The man slowed down, letting his spouse catch up to him, and then with a calculated swirl of his hand and a jump, forced them both to duck between the wild flora. The lights passed above them, then withered away, continuing their search. The horrid yells slowly dissipated into the back.

Eli pulled away from Thrawn, whose whole body he had unconsciously shielded with his own, and rolled down on his stomach. Dirt had stuck to their wet bodies, attracting numerous flies and bugs. Thrawn pulled him forward. With the last of their energy, they forced themselves to crawl into one of the cobwebbed bushes. 

“The Chiss ship…” Eli balled his hands against the ground, using it as a prop to sit. He carefully put his spouse’s body up and rested it on his shoulder.

Thrawn took a small device from his uniform's front pocket and turned it on. Dozens of rows of unintelligible symbols appeared on the projector. Eli left the man in peace as he tried to make sense of them on his own. He was quite fluent in Cheunh already, yet the written part was still an enigma to him.

“They’re near…” Thrawn finally gasped, interrupting his thought process yet again. Thrawn and Eli had managed to come in contact with the Chiss Ascendancy and had asked for help the second day after finding out about Thrawn’s...condition. 

Breathe in. Breathe out. 

“Are you okay?” The man nodded, not asking the question in return. Eli had made him promise not to, when their run first started two days ago. Not until they got themselves out of this mess, at least. He shot a worried glance at the Chiss’s swollen belly, and then looked back at Thrawn. Another nod. Good.

Eli allowed himself to snuggle his partner closer, ignoring the small spiders running down his back, underneath his clothes.

“Tired?”, he whispered softly.

“Hmm…” The man mumbled in his chest. With that, Eli knew there were no hopes of making him go any further than that. He rested his hand protectively on his belly, and pressed two kisses to his temple. They stayed like that, keeping each other warm, as the cries and yells were driven further and further away from them, until they too disappeared entirely.

\---

“Mitth’raw’nuruodo” A deep raspy voice called out from behind them, many hours later, stirring them both wide awake. His owner came around not long after, hovering above them, concern evident in his eyes and the wrinkles of his face. Then in a second, this all gave precedence to shock as he took notice of their conditions, and then to softness, as he bent down to stroke one of Thrawn’s wet cheeks and stare down at him. “Oh, little brother,” he said after a short while, his entire face contorting, “what have you gotten yourself into this time..”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter - secrets, tying those the past two fics together  
> also - imagine Thrass being the stereotypical father with a teenage daughter towards Eli the first few weeks.  
> "You did WHAT to my brother?!"  
> "You better carry that next child your damn self, Eli Vanto. Is that what you're calling yourself?"  
> "That's his name." (bonus points to whoever guesses the reference)
> 
> also, on a different note, if there's anyone living in an English-speaking country, could you please recommend any good chemistry, biology and/or maths books grades 8 to 12? (name of the author/title or even just the publisher). I'm currently in a german school, so everything I learn in those two subjects is in german, but I'd really love to see the names of those terms in one more language. (yes, I'm a huge nerd, why do you ask?)


	6. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> thrawn going through the phases of a 15 year old fangirl posting her first fics, as described by one

Secrets.

It was not something Mitth’raw’nuruodo took easily to having. They were a necessary burden, indeed, and especially so in his chosen career, but that hardly meant he’d ever grow accustomed to lying. Thrawn was an honest Chiss.

This fact (and an off the cuff comment made by Eli) was what originally bore the idea of a journal. An expected follow-up to his internal turmoil, Thrawn thought, and nicely fitting to his mysterious persona as well. A place dedicated to his true thoughts and feelings - lacking all fears of the disapproval, disappointment, or even betrayal which always found themselves on the faces of all his mutuals. No more secrets, no more hiding, no more lies. Just him and his seemingly endless musings. 

It was supposed to be therapeutic. A break for his mind from tirelessly analysing different pieces.

Yet tirelessly analysing his own piece was what he yet again found himself doing. 

1028 mentions of Eli Vanto’s name. In two months. His rational demons disappeared into thin air of shame, the knowledge of the date of the first entry altogether in this journal serving as the stamp to their resignation letter.

So why was Eli Vanto mentioned so much?, the irrational angels asked, waving away the demonic dustlets with traditional Mitth-family fans.

And, of course, Thrawn knew the answer. Thrawn knew all the possible answers one could find hidden behind this. 

First and (Thrawn hoped) most obvious, Cadet Vanto was his personal aide-de-camp and translator. So, when retelling stories of his day, it was only natural most of his sentences would contain “Cadet Vanto said…” in some manner or form.

~~_ None of them did. _ ~~

Secondly, Vanto was his coworker. Thrawn dutifully ignored the part where that was a big part of his first argument instead - if there was one place for ridiculous arguments trying to justify himself, his journal was it. And hadn’t those rationalities resigned? Moreover, Eli had mentioned this part specifically, before his cheeks bloomed in the beautiful burgundy colour, that reminded Thrawn of sunsets, and traditional fans  ~~ and fiery, flowing wedding go- ~~

And finally-

Thrawn shuddered, fingers scratching against the leather covers of the journal.

Finally-

Finally, Thrawn was glad no one could read his journal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the last sentence is me about my ao3 account btw


End file.
